Swarbrick denied that the players were suspended but said they would be held out of practices and games until the matter is resolved. There was no timeline given for the investigation, which falls under the university honor code process, to be completed.

"At this juncture, no one has been judged responsible for academic dishonestly, and no one has been dismissed from the university," Rev. John I. Jenkins, the university president, said. "We'll go as quickly as we can, but our emphasis will be on thoroughness."

Earlier, Notre Dame released a statement indicating it had received evidence on July 29 that students — including an unspecified number who don't play football — had submitted papers and homework written by others, triggering an Office of General Counsel investigation.

Jenkins said there was no evidence that head football coach Brian Kelly or any members of his coaching staff knew about potential academic misconduct.

"Once an academic staff member had suspicions, they immediately brought it to our attention," Jenkins said.

Swarbrick said Kelly was "devastated" when he found out about the allegations on Thursday but was fully committed to assisting the investigation.

Notre Dame officials declined to elaborate on whether the investigation could widen to include other athletes or perhaps former players, reaching into past seasons. They also declined to specify when the alleged academic fraud took place.

Daniels and Russell were important parts of the 2012 team, which finished the regular season 12-0 before losing to Alabama in the BCS championship game. Notre Dame, according to the statment, will voluntarily vacate any victories from seasons in which players who should have been ineligible participated.

"We're going to have this investigation go wherever it leads us and the possibility it may affect prior years does not reflect any conclusion, it reflects a commitment to the thoroughness of the investigation," Swarbrick said. "We're in a process now of following every bit of evidence presented to us and seeing where it leads."

Notre Dame made the NCAA aware of the investigation on Friday morning, Jenkins said. However, this appears initially to be a university honor code matter, which wouldn't necessarily bring in NCAA involvement.

Quarterback Everett Golson missed last season because of an academic issue. He has returned for this year and was named Thursday as the starter. Swarbrick bristled at the suggestion that the current investigation speaks to a pattern of academic issues.

Jenkins categorized the investigation as the system at Notre Dame doing its job.

"At any university you're dealing with young people; the vast majority of them make good decisions but sometimes they make bad decisions," he said. "Our job is to hold them accountable and use those incidents as ways to educate them. I think we've done that."​